- 1.
Contact the police immediately. You need to provide the car's make, model, color, license plate, VIN, last location the vehicle was seen, features of the car, safety features, and other distinctive features.
- 2.
After the police create a report, ask for a copy. You'll need a police report for the next step.
- 3.
Contact your insurance company. After the police, make sure your insurance company is informed as soon as possible and file a claim. Submit the police report and any other information required.
- 4.
Inform the DMV. The Department of Motor Vehicles also needs to be informed of the theft. They can update the VIN in their records to show that it belongs to a stolen vehicle.
- 5.
Next, contact your home or renters insurance companies. More often than not, their policies may cover items in your vehicle; like your laptop, mobile phone, jewelry, and more.
- 6.
You also need to contact your lender or bank to inform them of the theft. There's a possibility of thieves using your personal information from your vehicle to access your bank accounts or commit fraud.
- 7.
Check around your local area for your car. It may not have gotten so far. You can check nearby streets, parking lots, and impound lots. Some thieves abandon stolen cars after using them for some time. So you just may be lucky enough to find yours around.
- 8.
You can also use VIN check services like Detailed Vehicle History to track your car's history and any changes in its status.